Tim Thomas, 2011

The Boston Bruins' 2011 playoff run, which ended in a Stanley Cup victory, was one to remember, and Tim Thomas was the driving force behind the team's success.

En route to Boston's first Stanley Cup in 39 years, Thomas would become the oldest player to ever win the Conn Smythe Trophy after putting up some absolutely unbelievable numbers.

He completed four shutouts, which helped him post an outrageous .940 save percentage. That postseason run would turn out to be the pinnacle of Thomas' career, a peak Bruins fans will remember for ages.

Brad Richards, 2004

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In the 2004 playoffs, the Tampa Bay Lightning fielded a stacked team with Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis leading the charge.

But Brad Richards emerged as a real superstar in the postseason, scoring 26 points in 23 games, including 12 goals. Richards' real mark in those playoffs came with his clutch timing, as seven of those 12 goals were game-winners—still an NHL record today.

Richards helped Tampa push through seven-game series in the Eastern Conference and Stanley Cup finals, winning the Conn Smythe for his timely goals.

Martin Brodeur, 2003

In an epic Stanley Cup series between the New Jersey Devils and Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (why did they change that name?), fans were treated to one of the best goaltending showdowns of all time.

Brodeur ended up coming out on top in the seven-game showdown, as he led his Devils to a thrilling Stanley Cup victory while setting a record in the meantime.

Brodeur had a remarkable seven shutouts in that postseason, a record which he still holds. His 1.65 GAA and .934 save percentage weren't too shabby either, but his positional counterpart brought home some valuable hardware of his own, leading to the next slide on this list.

Jean-Sebastien Giguere, 2003

Martin Brodeur may have led his team to win the Stanley Cup in 2003, but by no means could you consider Jean-Sebastien Giguere a loser.

His numbers were outrageous. He posted five shutouts, a .945 save percentage and a 1.62 GAA in 21 games and was spectacular against the Devils.

He also had an impressive 15-6 record, as Anaheim stormed through the playoffs while only losing two games before reaching the Stanley Cup finals. The fact that Giguere won the Conn Smythe Trophy without winning the Cup is a testament to his incredible performance.

Peter Forsberg, 2002

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I think we all sort of forget how absolutely dominant Peter Forsberg was for a period of time in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

If you need a refresher, try this on for size: after having his spleen removed halfway through the 2001 playoffs, Forsberg decided to sit the entire following regular season out, returned for the playoffs and led everyone in points.

He didn't just lead everyone in points, he dominated. Steve Yzerman had the second most that postseason, with 23 points in 23 games. Forsberg had four more points (27) in three less games (20). All following sitting out the entire regular season after getting his spleen removed.

His Avalanche may have lost to Yzerman's Red Wings in the Western Conference Finals that year, making him the only player on this list to not have been in the Stanley Cup Finals, but it would be a crime to overlook this incredible performance.

Cam Ward, 2006

Cam Ward is now known as one of the better veteran goaltenders around the NHL, but back in 2006 he was just a rookie trying to make his mark on the team.

He would end up doing a lot more than just make his mark, as he became the first rookie goaltender to win the Stanley Cup since the great Patrick Roy did it way back in 1986.

Mostly relegated to a backup role in the regular season, Ward would come in to replace Martin Gerber in the first round with Carolina down two games to Montreal. They went on to win the series and Ward stayed in net.

His 2.14 GAA and .920 save percentage are still very good, if unspectacular, but the fact that he came in and led his team to the Stanley Cup (while winning the Conn Smythe) as a rookie is pretty legendary.

Evgeni Malkin, 2009

It's hard to imagine anyone dominating a playoffs like Evgeni Malkin did in 2009. In fact, only three players have scored more points in a playoffs than Malkin's 36.

Those three players are Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Paul Coffey, so Malkin is in some pretty rare company there, and his unbelievable statistics make him deserving of that.

While Sidney Crosby (deservedly) gets the lion's share of attention in the media, Malkin was the biggest reason for Pittsburgh's success that postseason and was the X-factor in finally defeating the Detroit Red Wings after failing to them the year before.